Evan Engram Injury Update Hurts Fantasy Outlook for Week 12 Matchup Against Bears in Chicago

Coming off their Week 11 bye, the New York Giants returned to practice on Monday ahead of a Week 12 matchup with the Chicago Bears.

While Evan Engram is out of his walking boot after missing the Giants' Week 10 loss to the Jets with a foot injury, he didn't practice today, clouding his status for Sunday.

When he's healthy, Engram is one of the best tight ends in fantasy football. He has only seen less than seven targets in one game this season, averaging 5.5 receptions, 58.4 yards and 0.4 touchdowns on 8.5 targets per game. He ranks seventh at the position with 13.7 PPR fantasy points per game.

In his absence, Rhett Ellison stepped up with three receptions for 43 yards, though he only made it through 48 percent of the Giants' offensive snaps before going down with a concussion. Ellison's status is uncertain for Week 12 as well.

That leaves rookie Kaden Smith as the potential starter against Chicago. He saw one target while playing 57 percent of the snaps in Week 10, and in a brutal matchup against the Bears (top-10 against the pass in Football Outsiders' defensive DVOA rankings), he wouldn't provide any fantasy value, even if he did start.

If Engram does suit up, he should be considered a TE1 for the week. Even in a tough matchup, his volume alone should put him into play. If he doesn't, neither Ellison nor Smith are worth consideration, even as streaming options. Assuming Engram sits, no Giants tight end ranks in the top-12 at the position of our Week 12 PPR fantasy football rankings.

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Jason Schandl is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Jason Schandl also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username Jaymun. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.